Originally Posted by dolebludger

I'd like to thank everybody again for such good responses, and appologize again for my spelling problems. One thing I have noticed is there seems to be very little support for ALL of the programs of the Bush administration. Oh, some like SOME of the programs and conduct, but dislike the rest, or so it seems at least.

Is there anybody out there that is for 100% of Bush's actions, programs, and goals?

Thanks,
Richard

Originally Posted by KirkVining

I'm in favor of Bush's daughters getting naked on national TV.

Originally Posted by KirkVining

Perhaps it is like pornography, hard to define but one knows it when one sees it. Its most simplistic definition is a class-based state that exists to serve a power elite.

The goal of fascist societies is a highly regimented society, the exact opposite of a Marxist classless society, it is extremely class based, where everyone knows their place. Classic Italian Fascism separated the military, industry and labor unions into penultimate state owned corporations, hence the synonomous term "Corporatism". Private enterprize existed within these corporations the way subsidy corporations work in our society. Individuals were subservient to the corporation they belonged to, the corporations were in turn subservient to the State, and the State is in turn subservient to The Party, and The Party in turn is subservient to The Guide, or the Leader, who is in charge of defining and managing The National Struggle and is generally seen as a cult figure. It's organizational structure looks something like a Christmas tree. Hitler's German model was the same, but he called them "Fronts" instead of "Corporativos". The purpose of all of this is to meld society into a well-oiled machine whose sole purpose is to increase productivity to feed a millitary machine that exerts totalitarian control over society, the point Spanish and Argentine Fascism reached, or take it another step and use the military machine to gain raw materials thru conquest.

What we are seeing today is the emergence of a refined form of this, called "Friendly Fascism" or "Cowboy Fascism" by various writers, which includes mass media components not available to earlier fascist movements that are capable of "manufactuing consent" by bombarding the populace with media messages that contain only one set of explanatory facts repeated ad naueseum, with a uniform conclusion mouthed by both media and government officials. In this new model, Mussolini's model changes slightly by making the State and Party subservient to the Corporations, with the leader cult carefully manipulated by the corporations using their mass media component.
This eliminates the need for a lot of the totalitarian trappings of earlier fascist states, and achieves the same goal - the subservience of all segments of society to a power elite.

Originally Posted by mikemover

Is it just me, or should all of the "it's all about the oil, it's always been all about the oil" people do one of two things:

1. Stop driving your oil-burning cars and/or trucks altogether. Do not ride any oil burning public transportation. Do not fly in an oil-burning plane. Do not use an oil-burning heater. Do not use any plastics or rubber or any other petroleum-based product.

.........OR...........

2. Shut up. It's getting REALLY tiresome.

If you want to keep chanting that ridiculous mantra, then put your money where your mouth is, fellas. Buy a really nice bicycle, and start pedalling.

Oh, wait....you can't do that either....the tires are made with oil....the vinyl seat is made with oil.....the plastic grips are made with oil....the rubber brake pads are made with oil......the chain is lubricated with oil.....

I guess you're walkin'. OH, and be sure not to buy shoes with rubber soles! The oil, ya' know....

Mike

Originally Posted by Hatterasguy

Let the flamming begin but I love my country and will always support her and her leaders over other countries.

Just a point of view from the other side.

Originally Posted by Botnst

You couldn't possibly know any better.